Big Oil Cash Pays Off

Earlier this month, the U.S. House passed legislation to greatly expand offshore oil drilling in the United States. In April, many of the members that voted for this legislation also pocketed cash from big oil PACs, according to Public Campaign Action Fund analysis of FEC filings.

"WASHINGTON -- In the month leading up to an early May vote over whether to expand oil drilling in the Gulf of Mexico and open the coastal waters of Virginia for exploration, three of the nation's top oil companies made donations through their political action committees to 26 House lawmakers.

All but one of those lawmakers, including five Democrats, ended up supporting the oil-industry-backed bill. The 26th lawmaker, Rep. Sam Johnson (R-Tex.), abstained from voting, according to data compiled for The Huffington Post by the good government group Public Campaign"

In total, these members received $40,000 in campaign cash from the PACs of Exxon, Chevron, and ConocoPhillips in the month of April alone. In the 2010 cycle, oil and gas interests spent a total of $21 million on campaign contributions to candidates for Congress.

With the House and Senate both voting on oil legislation in May, we can't wait to get our hands on the donation filings for this month.